Bella Notte
by blueland10
Summary: Never in a million years did Eleanor think this would happen to her. She never expected to go undercover and she never imagined she would get kidnapped. Follow up to Gone Baby Gone and I'm Not That Easy Blue Eyes.
1. Chapter 1

It was cold in the conference room and the rain hitting the windows seemed to make it colder. She rubbed her hands up and down her arms as an uncomfortable feeling blossomed in her stomach. She could tell by the hushed voices outside of the doors behind her something wasn't quite right. One voice was disappointed and worried; the other was sympathetic but firm.

"Peter there has to be someone else who is better suited for this." the disappointed voice said so softly that she had to strain her ears to hear.

"Neal I understand how you feel, but she is in a unique position to help." said the sympathetic voice said.

"How is getting a gun pointed at your head considered a 'unique position'? Peter she can't do this."

"It's up to her Neal; if she doesn't want to do it then she doesn't have to. You have to let her decide." The glass doors behind her opened and she stiffened. Agent Peter Burke entered the room closely followed by her very handsome, blue eyed boyfriend, Neal Caffrey. She smiled when she caught Neal's eye and felt her heart skip a beat. "Ms. Roberts, how are you?" Agent Burke asked as he sat down across from her a blue case file in his hands.

"I'm fine, thank you." Eleanor Roberts said with a polite smile. Neal sat down next to her, his finger tips brushing her thigh sending a shiver up her spine that had nothing to do with the cold.

"I'm sure you can guess why I asked you here." Agent Burke said opening the case file in front of him. Eleanor sighed as she caught a glimpse of what was in the file. There was a picture of her being held by a hulk of a man who was pointing a gun at her head. Her uneasiness was confirmed, this was about the Sampson gallery.

About two weeks ago at her work's charity party, she was held at gun point as four masked men cut priceless paintings from their frames. Agent Burke and the FBI had shown up in the nick of time before any really harm came to her. Unfortunately, the thieves got away and she was left on the gallery floor, shaken and dazed. Eleanor had vaguely been kept in the loop, getting random reports here and there, always saying the same thing, 'we're looking into a lead' or 'we're doing the best we can'. But that was it, until now.

"Did you catch them?" she asked breathlessly as Neal's hand found hers. Her heart began to pound at the thought of finally getting the justice she deserved. She wanted those creeps behind bars where they belonged.

"Not exactly." Agent Burke said carefully. "We still don't have an I.D. on 'Dr. Carmichael' but we do have a name for the man who attacked you."

"Who is he?" Eleanor asked squeezing Neal's hand.

"Ricky Kensington. He served one year in the military before getting a dishonorable discharge for larceny and assault on a commanding officer. He also did five years in a state penitentiary before being released on parole for 'good behavior'."

"Are you going to bring him in?"

"Well that's part of the reason why I asked you here. It seems like Kensington and 'Dr. Carmichael' are changing their M.O. They are stepping up their game, becoming more sophisticated. We think they are looking to expand their crew."

"I don't understand. If you know who he is then why don't you bring him in?" Eleanor asked. "So what if the others are changing their M.O. what does that have to do with anything?"

"If we bring Kensington in now, it will spook Carmichael and we might lose him and his crew."

"So you're just going to let him go?" Eleanor asked enraged.

"No, we have a plan that will not only take down Kensington but also Carmichael and his whole operation." Agent Burke said proudly.

"Well what is it?" Eleanor asked.

"I want to send you undercover." He said clasping his hands together. Neal stiffened beside her.

"Excuse me?" Eleanor blinked. He couldn't be serious could he? But the look on the Agents face was far from joking. "You want to send me undercover?"

"You have a unique relationship to the case that I think can be beneficial."

"That Kensington man held a gun to my head and threatened to kill me. How is that beneficial?" Eleanor asked still not fully comprehending what Agent Burke was telling her.

"They don't know that you have an association with the FBI. As far as they are concerned you just happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time."

"But I was at the wrong place at the wrong time."

"That maybe true, but we can use that to our advantage." Agent Burke said with a hint of a smile on his face.

"I don't follow."

"I'd send you in as a perspective hire."

"But they know who I am."

"They think they know who you are. You'd tell them that you were at the charity party casing the gallery for a heist you were planning and that you accidentally got caught up in all the action."

"You think they'll believe it?"

"We can set you up with the perfect cover." Agent Burke said. "And once you have become a member of his crew, we can get evidence on them we need and take them down for good."

"Don't get me wrong Agent Burke, it sounds like a great plan and trust me I would do anything to take these guys down, but I don't have any training. I'm not an agent."

"Finally, a voice of reason!" Neal said speaking up for the first time. "I told you Peter, this isn't the job for her."

"I know you don't have any training." Agent Burke said giving Neal a stern look. "So that's why I'll be sending Neal undercover with you, as your partner."

"I would go undercover with Neal?" Eleanor asked again just to be sure she heard him right.

"Yes. Now I know there are some risks but I think you can handle it. We'll have surveillance on you at all times when you meet with Carmichael, the second something goes wrong, we'll be there. So what do you say?" Eleanor bit her lip looking from Agent Burke to Neal's pleading face. Her mind was whirling. This was her chance to get justice, to get back at those who hurt her, and she would be doing it with Neal. In its own twisted way it sounded kinda fun, like she was going to be in a sexy James Bond movie. She would get to see Neal in action, in his true element and that excited her.

"You don't have to do this Ellie." Neal whispered softly. "We can always get someone else to do it; it doesn't have to be you."

"I'll do it." Eleanor said firmly, much to Agent Burke's excitement and Neal's horror. "I want to take these bastards down."

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><p><strong>An: Hello again! At the end of Gone Baby Gone I asked what kind of story I should do next and I got just about an even amount of input for a kidnapping story and an undercover story. So I had this crazy thought (a HUGE thanks to puellascribit5...you know why) and mashed them up together, thus the birth of Bella Notte. I hope it will live up to your standards! Tell me what you think so far!**


	2. Chapter 2

"What the hell?" Neal said standing up. "You'll do it? Ellie what are you thinking?"

"I'm thinking Neal, that this is my chance to take down those bastards that held a gun to my head."

"Yeah but you don't have to do it! There are other well trained agents that can do this job!"

"Maybe I want to do it Neal." Eleanor said standing up trying to keep her voice even. She understood why he was so upset, she was technically putting her life in danger, but it was her life and she wanted to do this. Neal may be her boyfriend but he did not control her life. "I know why you're mad I do, but Neal, haven't you ever wanted to get back at someone, to experience that feeling of revenge?" Neal's eyes suddenly became icy cold and full of rage. He no longer looked like the con man she fell in love with. Instead he looked…scary.

Eleanor's mind immediately flashed to the name Kate, Neal's girlfriend before her. Neal had told her that Kate died in a plane explosion and that he never found out who killed her. Of course he wanted revenge; someone that he cared about deeply was taken from him. At least when Danny died, she found the culprit. Neal on the other hand, still had no idea who killed her. If there was anyone in the world who wanted revenge, it was him. But as quickly as his cold eyes came, they left. Neal was back and she knew that this time he would understand. "I have to do this Neal."

"Fine…if you feel you must." He said throwing his hands up in the air. He turned his back on her and pinched the arch of his nose. Eleanor sighed walked over to him, wrapping her arms around his middle.

"Come on it could be fun." She said talking into his back. He was upset, she knew that, but if she played her cards right he wouldn't be for long.

"Fun? How do you think going after potentially dangerous art thieves is fun?"

"Well for one we'll be going undercover, I don't know about you but that sounds pretty sexy to me." Eleanor said teasing him. Neal turned around and looked at her, his eyebrows raised.

"Really?"

"Oh yeah, it's a total turn on." She smiled devilishly.

"You have any plans for lunch?" he asked winking at her.

"Oooh sorry, I should have told you sooner but I had to take my lunch now so I could come to this meeting."

"Is that so?" Neal said pulling her close.

"Yeah and if I'm not there in twenty minutes I'm gonna get in trouble." She smiled her lips just inches from his.

"Need a ride?"

"I think I can find my way." She said breaking out of his hold and walking to doors of the conference room.

"Don't think this conversation is over." He said before she left.

"Oh I wouldn't dare." She winked back at him. Eleanor walked out of the White Collar bull pen completely aware for the stares from the other agents. As she pressed the elevator button a wide smile grew on her lips. This was going to be fun.

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><p><strong>An: Yeah I know it's short, but I still want to know what you think! Thanks for the reviews, alerts, and favorites! And guess what? It's almost Tuesday! :D**


	3. Chapter 3

Eleanor sat at the nurses' station drumming her hand on the plastic surface, watching the second hand on the clock tick by. It seemed like the more she looked at it the slower time seemed to move. The first thing she did when she got to work was talk to her RN and explained her situation. Just by talking about it she got chills of excitement. The thought of going undercover made her want to jump up and down like a school girl. Thankfully her RN was very understanding and gave her as much time off as she needed, only if she picked up the graveyard shift tonight. At first it seemed like a fair enough trade, but now as she sat staring at the clock, she felt as if she had been duped.

Finally the clock struck seven and Eleanor ran to punch out. Fortunately the rain had stopped leaving the early morning air fresh. The sun had not yet risen, but the traffic was just as bad as during the day. So by the time she reached Neal's place it was seven thirty and she was struggling to keep her eyes open. She rang the door bell of the majestic house expecting one of the maids to let her in, but to her surprise June, Neal's land lady, opened the door.

"Eleanor," she cried looking classy as ever. "Good morning."

"'Morning June." Eleanor said giving her a sleepy smile.

"You look exhausted; did you get any sleep last night?" June asked letting Eleanor into her grand house.

"I wish, but no. Just got off the grave yard shift actually."

"Ah, the glamorous life of a nurse." June said sympathetically patting her on her arm. "Do you need anything?"

"No, thank you though. Is Neal up stairs?"

"I think so."

"Great, thanks June."

"Not a problem dear." She smiled as Eleanor made her way to the stairs. "And if you need anything just let me know."

"I will." Eleanor said sweetly. She gave June a little wave before starting up the stairs. She had met Neal's land lady several times before and she had always been so nice to her. June was an angel among men. Tiredly she reached Neal's door and let herself in. The stylish bachelor pad was empty, but Eleanor could hear the subtle sounds of water running. _Neal must be getting ready for work_, Eleanor thought as she dumped her bag onto his couch. _Guess we won't be finishing that conversation this morning_. She stripped off her light blue scrubs, pulled on a pair of comfy shorts and a white tank, and slipped into Neal's unmade bed. Eleanor pulled the sheets up close to her face and inhaled deeply, taking in Neal's sent. Her body began to relax and in seconds she had slipped into a peaceful sleep.

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><p>Eleanor woke suddenly. She didn't know what it was that pulled her from her restful sleep but her head jerked up, her face hidden by her hair. Gingerly she pushed herself up in a sitting position and brushed her hair out of her face. The afternoon sun was shining in the apartment at full force, almost blinding her. Blinking several times her eyes came to rest on a figure sitting at the kitchen table.<p>

"Hey there sleepy head." Neal said a wide smile breaking out on his handsome face.

"Hey." She said sleepily. "When did you get back?"

"Just a few seconds ago." He said getting up from the table and walking over to her. He plopped down on the bed and kissed her gently on the cheek. "How was work?"

"Same old same old." Eleanor said with a yawn. "What about you? Anything in interesting happen?"

"Well, I got this;" he said pulling a file out from behind his back, "from Peter this morning."

"My cover?" she asked excitedly snatching the file from Neal's hands all traces of sleepiness gone.

"Courtesy of the FBI."

"Michele O'Reily, a known art thief suspected of larceny, the smuggling high price items, and oooh this one's exciting, extortion. I like her, she sounds like fun!" Eleanor said reading over the file, feeling like a kid at Christmas. "Who are you going to be?"

"Remember old George Devore?" Neal said with a smile on his face.

"Him again? You aren't going to get jealous again are you?"

"George won't be hanging out with my girlfriend this time. This time he'll be with Michele O'Reily."

"Aren't you lucky?" she said winking at him. "But wait, I thought George was an art collector, not a thief."

"I never said how George got his art."

"Ahh, very clever Mr. Caffrey, very clever."

"I try." He said before kissing her on the lips. "Now come on get up we have work to do."

"Work? What kind of work?" Eleanor asked as Neal hopped up from the bed.

"Our first meeting with Carmichael is in two days. I have to get you con ready." He said with his signature smile.

"This ought to be good." Eleanor said getting to her feet. Neal stripped off his dark suit jacket and rolled up his sleeves.

"Eleanor Roberts are you ready to cross over to the other side?"

"Do you even have to ask?" she smiled.

For the rest of the day Neal taught her everything from dropping bugs to picking pockets. After a few dozen times Eleanor was finally getting the hang of it. Being a thief was harder then it seemed. And the growing heat didn't seem to help any. It got so hot in Neal's apartment that he was forced to shed his crisp button up for his white undershirt. Eleanor saw this as motivation, and began trying harder to see if he would take anything else off.

The sun had begun to dip behind the skyscrapers as Neal coached Eleanor on how to pick a lock. Somewhere, somehow he was able to get his hands on small door like structure that sat perfectly on his kitchen table. It was decorated with several different types of locks all for the sake of picking them. Currently Eleanor was stuck, tying to pick a simple deadbolt.

"Here," Neal said from behind her. "You need to relax." His hands slid down from her shoulders, to her elbows, then gently to her hands. "Take this hand here, put this hand here, and give it a little jiggle." Eleanor followed his advice, his hands moving hers gently. Within seconds she heard the satisfy click of the lock giving. "See just like that."

"You are quite the teacher, Mr. Caffrey." Eleanor said holding onto his hands. Neal's head came to rest on her shoulder, his breath warm on her neck.

"And you are quite the student." He whispered.

"You know, we never got around to finishing that conversation."

"And what conversation would that be?"

"Oh you know, the one about undercover work being hot and all."

"Right, that conversation. Where did we leave off?"

"I think we were right about here." she said turning and kissing him passionately on his soft lips. Neal's hands slid back up her arms and made their way around her chin. With lips still locked Eleanor stood from her chair entwining her hands in Neal's wavy brown hair, her heart pounding. Neal picked her up as she wrapped her legs around his middle and spun her around. Eleanor laughed stoking the side of his face getting lost in his deep blue eyes. This was turning out to be the perfect day. He laid her down gently on the bed, a smile glued to his face.

"This is where we left off."

"Yeah blue eyes, I think you're right."

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><p><strong>An: Tell me what you think!**


	4. Chapter 4

"Are you sure you want to go through with this?"

"I'm sure."

"No one is pressuring you into to this; you can back out at any time."

"Peter, I want to do this. I'm going to do this." Eleanor said firmly. She stood in the back of the FBI surveillance van next to a very dapper looking Neal and a somewhat concerned Agent Burke.

"Alright then." Agent Burke said getting down to business. "We put word out that George Devore, world class art thief, if is looking for work. Carmichael and his men took the bait. You, Eleanor, are going under as Mr. Devore's associate/girlfriend. I'm expecting them to recognize you, but if things get messy we'll be right there you just say the word. Carmichael and his men are dangerous, so Neal that means you'll have to lose the anklet."

"Love it." Neal said with his winning smile. Agent Burke rolled his eyes and pulled two watches out of his suit pocket, handing them the Eleanor and Neal.

"These are equipped with a one way radio and GPS, so if things go south, we'll be there. Any questions?"

"I think we got it Peter." Neal said as a tall, dark agent took Neal's tracking anklet off.

"That question was more directed to Eleanor."

"Neal's right, I'm ready." Eleanor said butterflies erupting in her stomach. This was really happening. She was going undercover for the FBI to take down dangerous art thieves. It was trilling.

"Ok, good luck." He said. Neal grabbed Eleanor's hand and led her out of the van into the busy traffic of New York. The mid afternoon sun was warm and inviting, perfect summer weather. With her free hand, Eleanor pulled dark sunglasses over her eyes and adjusted her top. She wasn't sure what Michele O'Reily would wear to an illegal job interview, so she had settled on a deep purple tank, black skin tight jeans, and a killer pair of stilettos. _When in doubt, go sexy_, She thought.

"You sure you're up to this?" Neal asked as they walked up the crowed sidewalk.

"Really? You're going to hound me too?"

"Ellie, these men are dangerous, I don't want you getting hurt."

"Believe me, I know that." Eleanor grumbled. They came to a stop at the crosswalk and waited for the light to change.

"Hey," Neal said his fingers brushing her cheek. "Don't get mad."

"I'm not," she smiled taking his hand in hers and kissing his fingertips. "So what do you say, ready to join a crew Mr. Devore?"

"Only if you are Ms. O'Reily."

"Oh I was born ready."

They walked across the street hand in hand to a quaint little corner café. Once inside Eleanor kept her sunglasses on, hiding her identity for as long as possible. Her eyes scanned the crowed space looking for a familiar face. Then she saw them. They were in the back sitting at a table facing the front. Eleanor nudged Neal gently and nodded in their direction. Neal cleared his throat in recognition and started toward the table. Eleanor watched in awe, her eyes transfixed on Neal. In a blink of an eye he had become a completely different person. Confidence and power seemed to ooze from every pore, it was intoxicating. But then the sight of the scary man, or rather, Ricky brought her back to reality.

He looked larger then she remembered, his thick muscles protruding from his black t-shirt, his face fixed in a scowl. Next to Ricky was Dr. Carmichael, looking rather smug with his straw colored hair slicked back.

"You must be Mr. Devore." He said smiling as Neal and Eleanor came up to their table. His speech was crisp and professional but Eleanor could hear the slightest hint of excitement seeping through his young voice. Carmichael's dark brown eyes grazed over Eleanor's body bringing a sly smile to his lips. Eleanor suppressed the urge to gag and forced her attention back on Neal.

"I am." Neal said not returning the smile but looking hard and distant. "I hear you're looking for new employment."

"That I am. The name's Justin Carmichael. Why don't you sit?" Justin said gesturing to the two chairs in front of him. Neal pulled out Eleanor's seat drawing more attention to her. "And who is your lovely friend?"

"Michele O'Reily, my associate." Neal answered for her.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Ms. O'Reily." Justin said taking Eleanor's hand and kissing it.

"Can we get on to business?" Neal asked rather snippy.

"Of course Mr. Devore, you're a busy man, I don't want to waste your time." he said inclining his head apologetically. "I looked into you Mr. Devore and I must say I'm very impressed. You are exactly what I'm looking for."

"I'm glad to hear it. What type of job do you have in mind for us?"

"Us? Oh no, see Mr. Devore I know what you've done. Your lovely friend Ms. O'Reily on the other hand I know nothing about."

"As I said before she is my associate, I can vouch for her."

"I'm sure that's the truth Mr. Devore." Justin said flashing a warm smile that did not reach his eyes. "I might know your record, but I don't know you and well frankly, I don't trust you. So I'm sure you can understand that your word means nothing to me."

"Then I guess out business here is done." Neal said getting ready to leave. This was it, the big lead in to her intro. Eleanor could feel herself start to freak out. What was she doing? She wasn't a FBI agent, she should be doing this! Then she locked eyes with Neal and her fears began to slip away. This was her time, her revenge; she wasn't going to let this get away from her. She placed a hand on Neal's arm and gave him a sexy smile. Eleanor turned to face Justin her smile still firmly in place.

"What exactly is it you want to know?" Eleanor asked finally taking off her sunglasses. The look of surprise on their faces was priceless giving Eleanor a surge of confidence.

"Hey…I know you!" Ricky said slowly recognition flitting across his thick brow.

"I would hope so; you held a gun to my head after all." Eleanor said sweetly.

"What is this?" Justin asked his voice horse.

"I don't know about you, but I was under the impression that this was a job interview." Neal said coolly.

"You-you were at the Sampson." Justin stuttered.

"Very good Dr. Carmichael." Eleanor taunted as if she was talking to a two year old.

"What are you doing here?"

"I think Mr. Devore has answered that question for you already." Eleanor pointed out. Justin continued to blink in disbelief, his cool and sophisticated demeanor gone. "I see I'm going to have to explain myself." Eleanor sighed and rolled her eyes. "I was at the Sampson casing the gallery for a heist George and I were going to pull before you and your thug intervened."

"Is that so?" Justin asked his façade slowly coming back into place.

"That's what I said." She snapped.

"I don't trust them." Ricky grunted.

"The feeling's mutual." Eleanor quipped shooting him a hateful look. "What else do you want to know Mr. Carmichael? How many jobs I've done, shoe size perhaps or maybe what turns me on?" Neal choked on his water shocked by her question but quickly recovered.

"As much as I would love to hear that answer Ms. O'Reily, I'm more concerned about your skill." Justin said with a chuckle. Eleanor gave him a sly smile and wink before getting up from the table. She made her way over to the desert counter, bumping into a man in a crisp suit. Her hand dove into his pocket lifting his wallet carefully with her two fingers, doing exactly what Neal taught her.

"Excuse me, so sorry." She said apologizing to the man who gave her a flirtatious smile in return. Eleanor weaved her way back the Carmichael's table, the man's wallet hidden in her back pocket. She took it out and slapped it on the table. "Anything else you want me to do?"

"She's good!" Justin laughed clapping his hand together. "I'm sold!"

"Glad to hear it." Neal said taking control of the conversation. "Now what's the job?"

"Ever heard of the _Bella Notte_?"

"Danza?" Neal asked intrigued.

"The very one; it's going to be at the Met for three weeks, I want you and your lovely associate to case the museum. Get me all the details, after that we'll plan the heist."

"You want us to case the museum?" Neal asked a look of disbelief on his face.

"I understand this job is a little less glamorous then what you're use to but you're the one looking for work not me. Take it or leave it."

"Fine." Neal said after a pause. Justin smiled and slid a cell phone across the table.

"Keep this on you; I'll call to give you the date." He said. Neal took the phone and slid it into his suit pocket and stood the leave. "This is my crew Mr. Devore, keep that in mind." Neal gave him an icy stare before taking Eleanor's hand and walking out of the café. A wide smile broke out on Eleanor's face once they were safely on the other side of the street walking back to the FBI surveillance van. Oh yeah, this was fun.

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><p><strong>An: Danza is a fictional artist as well as the Bella Notte. They are not real :) Tell me what you think!**


	5. Chapter 5

Eleanor pulled open the back of the FBI surveillance van only to be greeted with the stunned faces of Agent Peter Burke and his fellow agents. Their complete look of shock made Eleanor beam. She guessed, by the way they were reacting, that she did a pretty good job selling her story.

"Was I that bad?" she joked, unfastening the GPS watch from her wrist.

"No…no actually," Agent Burke stuttered. "You did very well. I'm surprised that's all."

"She's certainly is full of surprises." Neal muttered. Eleanor gave him a sideways glance. It was clear that Agent Burke thought she had done well but the guarded look in Neal's eyes told a different story. The stony look on his face deflated her exuberant mood leaving her feeling slightly less confident.

"So what now?" she asked.

"Now we wait for Carmichael's call. I'll have an agent sit on him and his men in case he tries something but, until then, we sit tight." Agent Burke said taking the watches from Neal and Eleanor. "You did great today Eleanor, now go home and get some rest." Eleanor nodded and turned to leave but stopped when Neal didn't follow. He had his leg resting on one of the swivel chairs as Agent Burke placed his tracking anklet on.

"You coming?" she asked trying not to look at the anklet. That stupid anklet was a dark cloud always hanging over her parade. It was his leash, the only thing keeping him here. Eleanor feared that when finally came off; he would run back to his old life. Sure Neal loved her and she loved him, but settling down wasn't his way. He was a criminal, a con man, always looking for that last score. She feared not even their little romance could convince him to stay.

"Nah, you go ahead. I'm gonna go over some things with Peter back at the office. I'll see you later." He said.

"Ok." Eleanor said trying her best not to sound upset.

"Dinner at your place?"

"Yeah, sounds great." She smiled. Eleanor stepped out of the surveillance van alone. A gust of warm air tousled her hair and drew her attention to the sky. Dark clouds were forming on the horizon and thunder rumbled ominously in the distance. _Perfect,_ she thought walking to the curb and hailing a taxi, _more rain_. A taxi pulled up and Eleanor got inside. She told the cabbie her address then turned her attention to the window.

Eleanor was so confused. Neal had made it very clear in the beginning that he wasn't comfortable with her going undercover, but she thought she had changed his mind. He seemed fine when he was teaching her the tricks of the trade a few days ago, and even today before the meeting Neal acted as if everything perfect. But now he was avoiding her, making comments, and closing himself off. Did she do something wrong? Was she a little too forward addressing Carmichael? She didn't like not knowing and she didn't like being at odds with Neal. Not knowing what Neal was thinking or how he was feeling drove her mad, but Eleanor guessed that just came with the territory.

"Miss?" the cabbie said cutting though Eleanor's thoughts like a steel knife.

"Oh sorry." Eleanor said realizing that they were outside of her building. She reached into her pocket and handed the cabbie his due money. By now the temperature had dropped several degrees and the once blue sky was now a swirling mass of grey. Eleanor shivered and ran quickly inside before it began to rain. Despite all of her confusion, Eleanor was certain of one thing: they needed to talk.

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><p>Neal sat at Peter's desk absently staring out the window watching the storm move in. He didn't really need to be here, he could have gone with Eleanor, but he needed to think. He wasn't entirely sure what, but something was bothering him. Sometime during the meeting today he developed a little nagging feeling in the back of his head. Neal tried to dismiss it as nerves, but the more he tried to ignore it, the stronger it got.<p>

"Something on your mind?" Peter asked looking up from his computer.

"No, why?"

"You've been sitting there for almost twenty minutes without saying anything."

"I'm not allowed to sit here?" Neal quipped.

"Neal, you're never that quite, or that still. What's going on?"

"It' nothing Peter, don't worry about it." Neal said dismissing him. Damn Peter and his inhuman ability to tell when something is wrong. No matter how hard he tries Peter can always tell. It was uncanny and a bit disturbing, especially for someone like Neal.

"You don't have to be worried about Eleanor, Neal. She's a big girl, she can handle herself."

"Who said I was worried about her?" _Damn_! Neal thought. Either Peter could read minds or he was off his game, but Peter had guessed it. The nagging feeling finally had a name, Eleanor.

"Uh, you and your body language told me."

"My body language is fine, I'm fine." Neal deflected.

"Sure you are, and I'm a monkey's uncle."

"I'm not worried about her Peter."

"It's understandable if you are." Peter said turning back to his computer. "I would be too if El went undercover."

"I'm not."

"But then again I would trust her to do the right thing and tell me if she was in too deep."

"Peter, I'm not worried."

"Ok," Peter said throwing his hands up in defeat. "If you say so."

"I do say so."

"Fine."

"Are we done here?"

"Yes, get out of my office." Peter said waving him out. Neal grabbed his fedora off the neighboring chair and left Peter's office. He hated when Peter was right.

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><p>It felt like ages since Eleanor sat on her couch. Now a days she spent most of her time over at Neal's place, not her own. It was a welcomed change to be home. She sat in her comfy pants and watched the rain fall, glad that she was inside. The day had begun to catch up on her and the high of going undercover was wearing off. She was tired, hungry, and slightly irritable. All she wanted to do now was eat and cuddle up with some Ben &amp; Jerry's.<p>

Footsteps echoed out in the hallway followed by the familiar scrape of a key being slipped into a lock. Moments later the door swung open to reveal a dripping wet Neal holding a large paper bag. Eleanor stifled a giggle and got up from the couch to fetch Neal a towel.

"Have a nice swim?" she called from her room as she searched for some dry clothes.

"Unbelievable, it just had to start pouring right as I got out of the cab!" he grumbled unpacking the Chinese food.

"You got that wet just walking into the building?" Eleanor asked handing him a dark blue t-shirt and some sleep pants.

"Yeah…" he said before slipping into silence. Eleanor took over the task of unpacking dinner as Neal changed into his dry clothes.

"Feel better?" she asked once he was changed.

"Much better, thank you." they sat down at her kitchen table and began eating, an awkward silence settling over the room. She could tell Neal had something on his mind and it was driving him crazy. He looked like she felt, confused and frustrated.

"Ok, this is ridiculous." Eleanor said putting down her chop sticks. "Neal we gotta talk. What's going on with you?"

"What are you talking about, I'm fine."

"For the love of god Neal, please don't lie to me." Eleanor said closing her eyes. They weren't going to get anything done if he was going to lie. "What happened earlier today? Huh? Did I do something wrong? If I did, just tell me and I'll fix it. Don't close yourself off to me-"

"I'm worried about you." he blurted out.

"What?" Eleanor asked his outburst taking her off guard.

"I said I'm worried about you Ellie." Neal said his eyes down cast.

"Neal," Eleanor began softly. "I thought we talked about this? I told you, I'm fine. I trust Peter and I trust you to keep me safe."

"I know that but it doesn't mean it helps any. What you did today was incredible, but it wasn't you. You're not cut out for my world. It's dangerous and no matter how much protection Peter provides, it won't be enough. I don't want to lose you."

"Oh Neal." Eleanor said getting up from her seat to sit in his lap. "When you were in the hospital, I didn't leave you. When you told me about your past I didn't leave you. Hell, I was even hit by a car and I didn't leave you. Don't you get it? I'm not going anywhere. You're stuck with me blue eyes." she smiled. "I love you, but you have to trust me Neal. If you keep this up you're going to worry yourself grey and then I would have to leave you. You're too young to have grey hair."

"You would leave me if I had grey hair?"

"Yes, I would." She lied. Her plan had worked. Neal's eyes softened and he began to look like his normal self again.

"That's a bit superficial don't you think?"

"What can I say, I'm a shallow person." Eleanor shrugged

"I don't know about Eleanor Roberts but that Michele O'Reily sure is. 'Do you want to know what turns me on'? What the hell kinda of question was that?"

"I was thinking on my toes."

"Bull shit." She smiled kissing her. Eleanor laughed and returned to her seat, the mood much lighter than before.

"So I was incredible huh?"

"Very convincing."

"Well I had a wonderful teacher." Eleanor said with a wink but before Neal could answer there was a ring coming from his wet pile of clothes on the floor. Neal quickly got up and pulled out the phone Carmichael gave him.

"This is George." He answered exchanging worried glances with Eleanor. "Yes…we can…fine…bye." He said before hanging up.

"Was that Justin already?" Eleanor asked quietly.

"Yeah." Neal said sitting down. He looked worried again which made Eleanor worried.

"What did he want?"

"He wants us to case the museum tomorrow night."

"So soon? I thought he would wait a while."

"I thought so too." Neal said his brow furrowed.

"Do you think it's a trap?"

"I don't know." he said shaking his head. Eleanor let out a long sigh. If they backed out now, then she would lose her chance to get revenge and she couldn't let that happen. They had to do this. She looked at Neal and saw the same determination in his eyes.

"Well Mr. Devore, let's go case a museum."

* * *

><p><em>The following night<em>

"I feel over dressed." Eleanor whispered into Neal's ear as she pulled the hem of her dress down.

"Relax, you look amazing." Neal answered back. Eleanor rolled her eyes and finished off her glass of champagne. Of course Neal would say she looked amazing, she looked like every male's fantasy. Her dark hair was pinned back, her lips were candy apple red, and she wore and equally bright red dress a few inches too short for her liking. She felt every eye on her and it made her uncomfortable, but that was her job. Eleanor was the distraction.

Justin Carmichael had planned it perfectly. Tonight was the first night of the three week long Italian Masters show at the Met that would be displaying some of the most famous Italian works of art. He had hired Neal and Eleanor to case the museum so he could plan a heist to steal Elmo Danza's _Bella Notte_.

Somehow, casing the museum translated to Eleanor dressing like a slut and making a scene so Neal could check out the security. Agent Burke, who was currently in the FBI van a few blocks down the street, seemed to think Neal's idea was perfect despite Eleanor's complaints. So here she was about to make a fool out of herself, dressed like a hooker. Eleanor caught Neal smiling at her and gave him a venomous stare. He was going to pay for this.

"Get your head in the game buddy." She hissed replacing her empty glass with a full one from the waiter passing by. Downing it, she handed to glass to Neal and reached for another.

"You know, you don't really have to get drunk." Neal commented as Eleanor finished her second glass.

"I like to stay in character." She grumbled.

"Well then Ms. O'Reily, go get 'um." He said giving her a little push causing her to stumble. She gave him one last nasty stare before stumbling up to a security guard sitting behind his desk. She waggled her fingers at him playfully as she leaned over the counter, hunching her shoulders.

"You're cute." She said slurring her words. Neal gave her and encouraging wink as he inched closer to the security desk. "I like you."

"Ma'am have you been drinking tonight?" the guard asked unfazed by her appearance.

"Just a little." She squealed holding her index finger and thumb up to show how much she had to drink. The truth be told, she was beginning to feel a bit tipsy, those three glasses of champagne kicking in. "Oooh look at that!" she said suddenly pointing to a very old painting. She ran over to the painting, the security guard close behind, and stood just mere inches away from it. "Oooh, this one's pretty." She said very loudly.

She lifted a hand and reached out to touch the frame while a chorus of 'No' broke out behind her. As soon as her finger tips made contact with the wood, an ear piercing alarm sounded and the gallery floor was flooded with guards. Eleanor watched out of the corner of her eye Neal slip behind the security desk and retrieve the information. Meanwhile Eleanor clapped her hands over her ears and began screaming. Panicked guest began rushing to the doors as the guards and docents tried to calm everyone down. Though all the chaos no one noticed the handsome man in the slick suit typing away on the guard's computer.

"Someone turn that damn alarm off!" the guard next to Eleanor shouted over his radio and within seconds the only sound that could be heard was Eleanor's screams and the frantic yells of the exiting guest. "Ma'am, please stop yelling." The guard asked placing a firm hand on her shoulder.

"No, no, no!" Eleanor whined. "Get off!"

"There you are!" Neal said coming up to them. "I've been looking all over for you!"

"Do you know this woman?" the guard asked.

"Yes, she's my sister, I'm so sorry for the mess she caused. She can get a little out of hand when she drinks." Neal said wrapping an arm around her. Eleanor hiccuped, batting her eye lashes at the guard.

"I can see that." The guard said with a reproachful look. "Sir, I think it would be best if you and your sister left."

"Yes, yes right away." Neal said apologetically. "Again, I'm so sorry." He led Eleanor out of the gallery by the shoulders, waiting until they were safely outside to speak. "Nicely played." He whispered.

"Thank you." she hiccuped again. Neal gave her a once over concerned. "Are you really drunk?" he asked.

"No…maybe…a little." She said sheepishly.

"Unbelievable." He chuckled.

"What about you blue eyes? Did you get what we came here for?"

"I did." He said holding up a flash drive, his winning smile plastered on his face.

"Alrighty then, let's show Peter!" she said a little too loudly stumbling as she walked.

"Yeah, let's get you sober first." She smiled holding her close. Eleanor placed her head on his shoulder and began humming to herself. She looked up at the clear velvet sky, the moon shining down on them. The air was thick with the sound of car horns and the rumble of traffic. Eleanor found it soothing as she closed her eyes. "Ellie," Neal said nudging her as she began to drift off. "Ellie you gotta wake up."

"Hmmmm?" she said holding on to him tighter. She felt Neal fumble with something in his pocket, his hand brushing up against her stomach causing her to giggle. "Neal Caffrey, stop it!"

"Peter, its Neal." Neal whispered into his phone. Eleanor was about to say something but Neal put a hand on her lips to silence her. "I need you to pick us up; Eleanor is a little…incapacitated. We're outside the Met…yeah I know but she can't walk…Thank you."

"Peter's comin' to get us?" she asked looking back up at the sky.

"Yeah, Peter's coming." Neal said shaking his head. "How much champagne did you have?"

"Three or four..." she muttered before looking at Neal. His eyes seemed to sparkle in the moon light, or maybe it was the effects of the alcohol, Eleanor didn't really care, they looked beautiful. "Your eyes are like little blue stars…I like stars, but you can't see them here." she said pointing up at the sky. A wave of exhaustion swept over her as the sounds of traffic became dulled. She could feel sleep pulling on her and she was ready to fall into its open arms. Eleanor could hear a van pulling up to the curb and the sound of a metal door opening but she did not open her eyes.

"What the hell happened?" Agent Burke's voice echoed in her head.

"Champagne happened." Neal said lifting Eleanor up off her feet and into his arms, her head resting on his chest. A door closed and Eleanor felt herself being eased gently into a chair. Hushed voices swirled around her as yet another wave of sleep crashed over her. "Ellie, Peter's going to take you home." Neal said gently in her ear. She nodded as she felt him kiss her on the cheek.

"I'll have Jones follow you." Agent Burke said to someone far away. Eleanor couldn't remember who Jones was but the name sounded familiar. She let out a little sigh as she thought back to Neal's breathtaking blue eyes shining like stars. They were her little stars; they made her feel happy and safe. She could trust those stars, those stars loved her.

"I like stars." Eleanor said one last time before passing out completely.

* * *

><p><strong>An: Tell me what you think! I love to hear it!**


	6. Chapter 6

Eleanor woke to a harsh pounding in her head, like someone was hitting her repeatedly with a hammer or if a team of jackhammers were drilling into her skull. Her body felt like lead and her thoughts were sluggish. Where was she? Cracking an eye open, Eleanor looked around. She was in her room, in her bed, tucked in neatly. _Strange_, she thought. _How the hell did I end up here_? The last thing she remembered was standing outside of the Met saying something about stars. After that, things were a blur. Groaning, she rolled over onto her stomach and glanced at the clock sitting on her bedside table. It was almost five in the morning. Flipping back over to her back she let out a long sigh trying to remember how she got here. _It could have been Neal_, she thought resting her hand over her eyes. _But if it was him…where was he?_

Just then she heard voices coming from her living room. She sat up strait and instantly regretted it, as the pain in her head spiked. Taking several deep breaths, Eleanor swung her feet over her bed and tip toed to her bedroom door gripping a baseball bat firmly in her hands. Peeping through the door crack she could see her living room lights on and the flickering of her TV displayed on the walls. There was someone in her house! As quietly as she could she opened the door and started down the hallway leading to her living room. She rounded the corner screaming, bat held high in the air ready to strike.

"Whoa Eleanor wait!" Agent Burke yelled jumping up from the couch, shock written all over his face.

"Agent Burke?" she asked slowly lowering the bat. "What are you doing here?"

"Neal asked me to take you home." He said with his hands raised in a defensive position.

"Oh…sorry." She said sheepishly. Eleanor looked down at her feet and remembered she still had on that rather revealing red dress. Even more embarrassed then before, Eleanor blushed and wrapped her hands around her waist. "Would you excuse me for a moment?" she asked before running back into her room and grabbing a robe. Once she was decent, Eleanor calmly walked back to the living room and sat down in a chair facing an equally embarrassed Agent Burke.

"Listen Eleanor, I'm really sorry, I didn't mean to scare you." he apologized.

"Don't worry about it; I'm the one who should be sorry. I got drunk."

"Nah, it happens to the best of us." He said waving her off.

"Really, did you ever get drunk while undercover?" she asked Agent Burke, skeptical.

"Well…no, but technically you're not an agent so it doesn't count."

"I see." She said with a smile. "Where's Neal?"

"He went to pass along the information to Carmichael." Agent Burke explained settling back into the couch. "He said he would meet me here, once he was done."

"Good…that's good." Eleanor said before an awkward silence took over. "Do you want a beer?"

"Yeah, beer sounds great." He said giving her a smile. Eleanor got up and headed into the kitchen to grab two beers. It was a little strange having a FBI agent hanging around her house, she didn't really know what to do or say. Agent Burke was Neal's friend, not hers.

"Thank you." he said taking the beer from her when she walked back in. "You know Eleanor, you really are doing a great job. Not many people would be able to do what you're doing without any training."

"Thank you Agent Burke." She said sitting back down.

"Please, call me Peter."

"Alright then, Peter."

"How long have you and Neal been together?" he asked suddenly.

"Uh, about a year now."

"A year…wow." Peter said raising his eyebrows.

"You sound surprised."

"No, it's just…it's been a while since Neal was in a long term relationship…or this happy. I'm just glad to see him like this." His words made Eleanor smile. If there was anyone in this world who knew Neal better then himself, it was Peter and hearing him say that, made her happy.

"What about you Peter? I noticed your ring, how long have you been married?" she asked gesturing to his finger.

"Ten years." he smiled proudly.

"She must be a very lucky woman."

"You should come over for dinner sometime. El has been dying to meet you. In fact I can't believe you haven't stopped by earlier."

"I would love to!" she said cheerily. "From the stories Neal tells, it sounds like she is a wonderful cook."

"Neal tells stories?" Peter asked, taking a sip of his beer. "What kind of stories?"

"Oh you know, stuff about the good old days…work stories."

"Work stories, any about me?"

"Now Peter, you know I can't tell you that!" she winked. Eleanor held up her index finger and put it under her nose like a mustache, her body shaking with laughter.

"He told you about that?" Peter asked exasperated.

"Showed me the picture too!" she giggled.

"I'm putting him back in prison." He grumbled. Just then Eleanor's front door opened and Neal sauntered in looking way beyond tired. His powder blue shirt was no longer neatly tucked in to his navy pants and his normally well kept hair was unruly. Without giving Eleanor and Peter a thought he sat down on the couch next to Peter and rested his head in his hands. "How did the meet go?"

"Fine." Neal mumbled. Slowly he sat up and rubbed his eyes. "Carmichael is looking to hit the Met anywhere from tomorrow to the very last day of the show."

"He doesn't have a set timeline?" Peter asked his brow furrowed.

"No, he's keeping the details to himself, he said the less we know the better."

"Ah damn it, he suspects something."

"That's what I was thinking."

"Whoa, wait a second." Eleanor said worming her way back into the conversation. "What does he suspect?"

"I'm not sure, it could be nothing." Neal said shaking his head.

"But you're sure he's going through with the heist?" asked Peter.

"Oh yeah, defiantly. He's hired at least three more people for the job."

"Did you meet them?" Peter asked before finishing off his beer.

"No, I guess he thinks that falls under the 'less we know' clause. But I did hang around after the meet and heard Carmichael say something about a man named Kenneth working the cameras."

"You think he might have an inside man?"

"It's a possibility."

"Alright, I'll have Jones look into this 'Kenneth'." Peter said getting to his feet. "In the mean time, you two get some sleep. I'll call you if we have anything."

"Thanks for hanging out Peter." Eleanor said walking him to the door. "And sorry about the bat thing."

"Don't worry about it. Have a good night." he smiled before closing the door. Eleanor sighed and walked back the couch and sat down next to Neal who was giving her a quizzical look.

"What?" she asked.

"Bat thing?"

"Oh that, yeah I almost hit Peter with a bat, no big deal." She said acting like it was nothing.

"You what?"

"I had just woken up and I heard a noise coming from the living room. I thought someone had broken in, so I grabbed my bat. I didn't know it was him."

"First you get drunk then you attack an FBI agent with a bat." Neal laughed wrapping his arm around her.

"I didn't hit him, I _almost_ hit him. There is a difference." Neal just laughed and rested his head on her shoulder. Eleanor brushed a few stay strands of hair out of his face before resting her head on his. And just like that, they both had fallen asleep.

**A/n: This chapter is a bit of fluff, but I wanted to build a relationship between Eleanor and Peter, so ta-da! Fluff! Things start to get interesting next chapter so get ready! Tell me what you think! :D And thank you so much for the reviews, alert, and favorites! They make my day :0)**


	7. Chapter 7

It was a beautiful summer day, the perfect type day to go for a walk around the park. So that is exactly what Eleanor did. Since she was going undercover for the FBI, she was given a sort of extended vacation from work and Eleanor was not taking that for granted. The past few weeks had been bliss. Sleeping in late, doing things around the city she's wanted to do for years, and enjoying every minute of it. Today was no exception.

The smell of fresh cut grass, a gentle breeze floating in the air, and the joyful shouts of children running around followed her as she strolled through central park on her way to her favorite coffee shop. Everything felt carefree, not even the thought of busting a dangerous art theft ring could dampen her mood. It had been almost two weeks and not a single peep was heard from Carmichael and his gang. Eleanor had been worried at first, afraid that they might have caught on to her, but Neal and Peter insisted that everything was fine. So she trusted them. Eleanor came to the crosswalk and quickly crossed the street, heading straight for a little bistro. She found a table out on the sidewalk and sat down, taking in the view.

New York was no other city. Having grown up on the outskirts of Atlanta, she knew a thing or two when it came to cities and New York…well it took the cake. With its towering skyscrapers and busy streets, New York was like a collage of wonder, adventure behind every corner. Eleanor's phone buzzed in her jean pocket, shaking her from her day dream. Reaching down, she retrieved her phone only to find a text from Neal.

_Meetings almost done should be there soon. Love you._

Eleanor smiled and put her phone on the table. Another perk of not having to work, she and Neal didn't have to have lunch in the hospital cafeteria for a change, they could actually go out and have some decent food. Speaking of food, Eleanor's stomach let out a grumble that drew the attention of a couple sitting next to her. Embarrassed, she slipped on her sunglasses and ordered a coffee. Neal better not be lying about that meeting being over soon, she was starving. Returning her attention to the bustling street, her eyes feel on a rather large man wearing a dark jacket, standing on the other side of the street.

Ice flooded through Eleanor's veins as she locked eyes with Ricky Kensington. If he was here, then something was wrong. She picked up her phone and quickly dialed Neal's number. It rang and rang with no answer, Eleanor panicking with every pause.

_You've_ _reached Neal, big brother's watching leave a message at your own risk_.

Normally Eleanor would have found this funny but in current position it only added to her building fear. Her eyes tracked Ricky as he walked to the crosswalk, waiting for the light to change.

"Neal, please pick up." She begged into the phone. "Something's wrong, Ricky's here-"

"Hey, sweetheart." Ricky's ruff voice said over her. Her eyes shot upward to his towering presence. "Mind if I sit down?" he asked taking a seat. There was a sinister smile on his menacing face, as if he knew something she didn't.

"I'll call you back later George." Eleanor said before taking her phone away from her ear and placing on her lap, but not ending the call. "What do you want?" she snapped.

"Do you really want to know?" he said eyeing her over. This time Eleanor did not hold back her gag as she turned her head towards the street. "Oh come on sweetheart, don't be like that."

"My name is Michele, not sweetheart."

"Are you sure?"

"Well it is my name so yeah, I'm pretty sure."

"See I don't think it is. I don't think you and your little boyfriend, George, are who you say you are."

"You're paranoid." Eleanor said getting to her feet.

"Whoa where ya going sweetheart?" Ricky said blocking her way, his body uncomfortable close. His large hand clasped around her arm, holding her close.

"Away from you." she spat. "Now let go of me."

"I don't think so." He sneered.

"Do it or I'll scream." She hissed.

"Scream and I'll put a bullet in your back faster than you can take a breath." He said as he shoved something hard into her back, concealed by his jacket. Eleanor's heart stopped in her chest. "Now move."

* * *

><p>Neal sat in the conference room, moving his chair side to side while he listened to Peter drone on about a mortgage fraud case. His mind wandered to the beautiful woman who was waiting for him. The thought of her amber eyes and soft skin brought a smile to his lips. How did he get so lucky to have someone like her? After Kate, he didn't he could ever be happy again but Eleanor had proved that theory wrong. She was nothing like he had ever seen. Eleanor was always upbeat and feisty in her own way. She didn't care about his past, or that he did time in prison. She loved him for him, criminal parts and all. As if on cue, his phone began to buzz and Eleanor's name shown on the screen. He longed desperately to answer it but Peter gave him a hard stare, preventing him to do so.<p>

"Alright people, that's all for now. Good work." Peter said dismissing the room. Neal quickly picked up his phone and listened to Eleanor's message.

_"Neal, please pick up. Something's wrong, Ricky's here-"_

_"Hey sweetheart. Mind if I sit down?"_

_"I'll call you back later George. What do you want?"_ Neal's breath caught in his throat, his hand clenching the edge of the table. His heart began to pound wildly in his chest. Surely this wasn't happening. This had to be a joke, a stupid, horrible joke.

_"Whoa where ya going sweetheart?" _

_"Away from you. Now let go of me."_

_"I don't think so"_

_"Do it or I'll scream."_

_"Scream and I'll put a bullet in your back faster than you can take a breath. Now move." _Then the message ended. Neal felt his world slipping out of control. His worst fear had come to life.

"Neal, something wrong?" Peter asked, watching the young con carefully.

"It's Ellie." He croaked out, his blue eyes wide with unrestrained fear. "She's been kidnapped."

* * *

><p>The one fatal flaw of living in New York City was the crowded streets. Everyone had their own agenda. They didn't care about the people walking by them; they were just another obstacle in their way. Right now Eleanor hated New York. Ricky walked closely behind her, holding her at gun point. To anyone they looked just like everyone else on the street. But that couldn't be farther from the truth.<p>

Eleanor silently prayed that someone would notice something suspicious, but she know that wouldn't happen. If she still had her phone she signal something, anything, but Ricky had dumped it in the closest trash can along with her hope of being getting out of this mess. Eleanor looked dead ahead of her. She didn't know where he was going to take her or what was going to happen to her, but she did know one thing; she was being kidnapped.

**A/n: Tell me what you think and don't forget to watch White Collar tonight! I don't know about you guys but I'm really excited to meet Diana's girlfriend ;)**


	8. Chapter 8

Eleanor continued walked down the street, the pressure of the gun on her back increasing and decreasing with every step. She could run, but then not only would she be putting her own life at risk but the lives of those around her. They came to a corner and Ricky nudged her to turn. It was a side street with very little foot traffic. Maybe now they would look somewhat suspicious. But much to Eleanor's dismay, they continued on their way without being stopped. At the end of the street was a black van with tinted windows. _Perfect_, she thought, _a kidnapping van_. Ricky pushed her against the van, the gun pointed at her head. He slid open the door and waved for her to get in. Taking her time, Eleanor stepped in the van only to be pushed into a seat.

"Not one for manners I see." She quipped.

"Shut up and hold out your hands."

"Or what, you gonna shoot me?"

"I might." Ricky grumbled yanking her hands out in front of her. He held them together as he slipped on a zip tie and pulled them tight.

"ow." She said sarcastically. Ricky just sneered and pulled a black cloth bag over her head and slammed the door. Eleanor's fear was overwhelming. Here she was in the back of a van, a bag over head, her hands zip tied together, in the car with the same man that held a gun to her head. Things were going downhill fast and there was nothing she could do about it.

* * *

><p>"Neal, do you know where Eleanor was when she made that call?"<p>

"Yeah, a little French bistro called Bons Plats; I was supposed to meet her there for lunch."

"Alright, Jones, pull a team together and get down to Bons Plats, start canvassing the area for witnesses. Get me surveillance cameras, traffic cameras, ATM cameras, everything. People don't get taken in the middle of the day without someone noticing something. Diana contact Agent Kimberly Rice from Kidnapping and Missing Persons, I want her and her team monitoring Carmichaels' known hideouts at all times. And tell them to hang back, I don't want Carmichael and his men spooked. If she gives you any crap tell her to take it up with Hughes." Peter said pausing from his list of orders to look around the conference room full of agents. His eyes finally rested on Neal. He was in the back with his arms folded. He was trying to hide it, but the fear and worry he felt was too powerful to sweep up under the rug. Peter felt a surge of pity pull at his heart.

After Kate died, Peter didn't think he'd ever see Neal happy again. But a little mishap on a case landed Neal in the hospital and in the care of one Eleanor Roberts. It was like the sun had come out from behind the clouds. Neal was himself again, his normal pain in the ass self Peter had come to know, only better. His eyes were brighter, his smiles grew wider, and he seemed to emit a sort of happy energy that affected everyone around him. Eleanor had done so much more than nurse him back to health; she had given him a second chance at love. And now as her life was put in danger, he saw the dark clouds that surrounded him after Kate's death return. Neal had already been through enough, he couldn't put his partner though this again. It was his idea to send Eleanor undercover and it was his responsibility to bring her back alive. And to hell with anybody who gets in his way.

"This is not going down on my watch people. I want Eleanor found and these bastards behind bars. Let's get to work." he said dismissing his agents. There was a flurry of jackets, case files being closed, and bodies as the room emptied out. Then it was just him and Neal.

"What can I do?" Neal said walking up to Peter. There was determination shining in his magnificent blue eyes. It seemed as if Neal's desire to save Eleanor had erased most of his worry and replaced it with a fury that could make a grown man cower in a corner. It was admirable, but in a delicate situation such as this, it was very dangerous. As much as he hated to do this, he needed to get Neal as far away from here as possible.

"You can go home."

"Peter, I can help you, I've done it before in the past!" he argued.

"Yeah you have only it wasn't your girlfriend that was kidnapped." Peter tried to explain. He could see the anger rearing its head in his eyes, but he had to do it. "I'm sorry Neal but you're too close to this. Go home; I'll call you if anything changes."

"What if this was Elizabeth Peter? Would you just go home or would you do something?" Neal spat. Peter closed his eyes and sighed. He saw this one coming and he was sure that if he was in Neal's shoes he would be doing the exact same thing Neal was doing.

"Yes Neal I would." Neal snorted with disbelief and turned away from him. "I wouldn't want to put Elizabeth in anymore danger than she was already in. If you stay here, you'll get too caught up in the action, you could get seriously hurt and I can't have that."

"So you're saying that I'm a liability?"

"No Neal I'm saying that you aren't thinking strait and that you need to take a step back and cool your head. I'm not saying that I'm cutting you off completely, I just don't want you here in the middle of it all."

"Are you going to put me under house arrest?"

"I was hoping it wouldn't come to that." He said solemnly. Peter watched as Neal glared at him. Never before had he seen such anger in those eyes. It was almost frightful. Neal looked as if he was debating whether or not to punch him, the muscles in his jaw twitching. Right about now, Peter would gladly take a punch from Neal; after all, this was mostly his fault. If he had listened to Neal in the first place then Eleanor wouldn't have gotten into this mess. Finally Neal seemed to relax a little; giving in. he picked up his suit jacket and made his way to the door. But before he could leave, Peter stopped him, grabbing him by the arm. "Don't do anything stupid Neal; I don't want to lose you too." Neal just swallowed and nodded. Peter watched as Neal stormed passed his desk and out the double doors to the elevator. He knew with all his pent up anger and rage that Neal would try something, hell he was probably calling Mozzie right now, planning something. Neal had become so much more than just a consultant over the years; he couldn't have something happen to him too. Peter closed his eyes a prayed, _Please God don't let him do something stupid._

* * *

><p>Eleanor felt like she was going to be sick. It smelled like stale beer and three week old garbage in the van. The sporadic jarring of hitting bumps in the road and her sudden loss of vision didn't make things better. She tried to follow where Ricky was taking her, it felt like something Neal would have done, but she lost track five minutes in. frustration and anger had taken over her fear. Now she was pissed. She did not like being tied up in a stinky old van and she did not like that Ricky had commandeered her lunch with Neal. And she was going to let him know it as soon as she could.<p>

Just then the van came to stop, sending Eleanor forward. She slammed into the seat in front of her, and then hit the floor board with a crunch. The smell down here was ten times as bad, making her eyes water. She heard Ricky's coarse laughter as he got out and walked around the van. The sliding door opened and tiny pin pricks of light filtered in through the dark cloth covering her face. Ricky's hands grabbed for her, pulling her out and to her feet.

Eleanor was greeted with the calming sounds of water, the methodical clang of a water buoy, and the shrill cries of seagulls. She was by the water. But she didn't have long to gather anymore information. Ricky held her under her arm and dragged her, her feet stumbling on the gravel.

"Come on." He grumbled.

"If you took this blindfold off maybe I would be able to walk better moron." She hissed back. Ricky's grip on her arm grew tighter but that was it, no comment, no backlash. There was the sound of rusty metal scraping across rusty metal, and then Eleanor's feet hit smooth ground. The light, playful air from outside had been replaced with foul smelling dead air that made her gag. "Ugh, what is with you and these smells? Do you not know how to clean or something? Or do you enjoy living in your own filth?"

"Shut up!" he snapped, his voice echoing. _More clues to the puzzle_, she thought. Ricky had taken her to a warehouse by the water. It wasn't much, but at least she had some idea where she was. Ricky continued to drag her along for what seemed like forever until he finally stopped. Eleanor heard yet another door open, this time squeaky, like the hinges had rusted over. She felt herself being pushed from behind, making her stumble. The door shut and the bag around her head was removed. Eleanor was standing in an old empty meat locker. A single florescent light flickered above casting the locker in a dim eerie light. Ricky took out a switch blade from his pant pocket and held it up. A chill ran down Eleanor's spine as she stepped back. Ricky smiled and reached for her hands, cutting the zip tie.

"Oh well thank you." she sneered. Ricky rolled his eyes and left the locker, slamming the door shut. Eleanor ran to the door and listened to his heavy footsteps start to fade. Just when she thought he was gone a voice rang out.

"Ricky what the hell is going on?" Justin Carmichael's voice boomed in the open warehouse space just beyond her door. "I get this text telling me to come here and then Bobby tells me you've gone and kidnapped some girl?"

"Yeah, that chick from the Sampson, I grabbed her."

"Michele O'Reily, George Devore's girl?" Justin yelled. "Why the hell would you do that?"

"I don't trust her."

"I don't trust a lot of people that doesn't mean I go and kidnap them you idiot! What am I suppose to tell Devore? 'Oh sorry my dumb ass employee kidnapped your girl?' Damn it Ricky you never think!"

"I've been following her Justin, there's something off about her. You even said yourself that you suspect they're up to something. And today I heard her on the phone talking to some guy named Neal. She's lying to us man."

"Really, did it ever cross your tiny little mind that maybe this 'Neal' is a friend or relative of hers?"

"No…but her conversation, she was telling Neal that something was wrong, she was spooked." Ricky pleaded. There was silence which Eleanor could only imagine Carmichael filling with the shaking his head.

"Do you still have her phone?" Carmichael asked sounding exasperated.

"No I dumped it."

"Damn it Ricky!" he yelled. "If she was lying to us, we could have used her phone to find out who she really is!"

"Oh…"

"Yeah oh. God you must be the stupidest person on this planet."

"So what now?"

"Go back and find her phone, we need it."

"What are you going to do?"

"I'm gonna have a nice little chat with Ms. O'Reily." Eleanor backed away from the door, her breathing labored. If she thought she was in trouble before she was in real trouble now. Carmichael's expensive shoes grew closer and closer. Eleanor panicked. What should she do? Should she play along as Michele O'Reily for as long as she could or should she make a run of it? Time was running out, she needed to make up her mind and fast. _What would Neal do? What would Neal do? _She thought over and over. The footsteps stopped right outside the door along with her heart. There was a soft knocking before it swung open to reveal a smartly dressed Justin Carmichael. "Ms. O'Reily, how are you?"

"Considering that my lunch was rudely interrupted, I was held at gun point by your thug, again, shoved into his disgusting van, and then held captive in this meat locker, not so well."

"I apologize for my colleague's actions; he can be barbaric at times."

"So you gonna let me go?" she asked crossing her arms.

"No, I'm afraid not." He said clasping his hands together. "While I've got you here, I want to ask you some questions."

"Is that so? Well if you wanted to chat you should have called, there are better ways to get a hold of me other than kidnapping."

"I'll try to remember that next time." he smiled. "So on to business. Ms. O'Reily as I'm sure you are aware by now my colleague, Ricky-"

"You mean your resident pig?"

"Yes, Ricky seems to think that you and Mr. Devore haven't been very truthful. Can you tell me why that might be?"

"Not a clue."

"Really, there isn't anything that you're being dishonest about?"

"People lie, that's life. We came to you looking for a job; you're the one who hired us. Why don't you stop acting like my school teacher and start acting like a man." she spat. Carmichael's eyes flashed his cool demeanor slipping.

"You're right Ms. O'Reily I did hire you, which makes me your boss. And as your boss I require my employees to show me some respect. Talk like that to me again-"

"Or what? You gonna torture me? Shoot me? You've already kidnapped me why not go for the trifecta?"

"Shut up!" he yelled as his hand landed hard on Eleanor's face. Her cheek burned and her eyes stung with tears but she held her head high. She had accomplished what she wanted, she struck a nerve. "I was trying to be nice but I see that won't work." He reached behind his back and pulled out a gun, pointing it at Eleanor's face. "Now, why don't you tell me what you're hiding?"

**A/n: Bum bum bum! Tell me what you think!**


	9. Chapter 9

"I already told you, I'm not hiding anything." Eleanor said backing away, her hands raised in defense. "Why don't you lower your gun?"

"Oh now you show constraint, when a gun is pointed at you." Carmichael said with a sneer.

"Yeah well impending death can do that to a person."

"If I put this away, do you swear you'll answer my questions, truthfully?"

"Sure, just get that thing out of my face." She said eyeing the gun with extreme apprehension. Carmichael wavered for a moment before shoving it back behind his back.

"Good. Why don't we take this conversation some place a little more comfortable?" he swung open the locker door and held out his arm. Eleanor took a breath feeling like she was walking into the mouth of the lion's den. _Here goes nothing_.

* * *

><p>Neal paced his floor, back and forth, back and forth. How could Peter do this to him? If this had been any other case, if Elizabeth was the one who was kidnapped, Peter would be feeling the same way. He would want to do something, anything to find her. How was this any different? In kidnappings time was everything, and by Neal's count Ellie had be missing for twenty minutes. It had been ten minutes since Peter had sent him home and five minutes since he last called Peter getting the same answer, 'nothing new'. He hated just sitting here on the sidelines. He wanted to be out there looking for his girlfriend. The door to his apartment opened, causing Neal to spin around in a flurry. For one crazy moment he thought it would be Ellie, waltzing in with a smile on her face, apologizing for being late. Instead a short, bald, and bespectacled man stood in his door way.<p>

"I got your message, what's so urgent?" the man said walking in and began immediately pouring himself a glass of wine.

"Mozz, Ellie's been taken." Neal said his heart breaking with every word.

"And Ellie is…?"

"My girlfriend Mozz, come on you know that."

"Oh I'm sorry I've only been introduced to her once and that was awkward at best. You two were how should I put this...'preoccupied'." Mozzie said putting air quotes around that last word.

"I've tried to get you to come over for dinner, you've always been busy."

"'A man has always to be busy with his thoughts if anything is to be accomplished' – Leeuwenhoek." Mozzie spouted off.

"Mozzie, this is serious, she could die." Neal begged. At any other time Mozzie's eccentric style would have been fine, but with Eleanor's life hanging in the balance it hardly seemed appropriate.

"Alright what do you need?"

"I need you to look into Justin Carmichael." Neal said handing Mozzie a case file.

"This is your current case?"

"Yeah, Ellie and I went undercover to help steal Danza's _Bella Notte_. Carmichael's muscle, Ricky Kensington is the one who grabbed her."

"Danza, that's a serious pay day." Mozzie said reading over the file. "It says here that Carmichael has over four know safe houses."

"I know. Peter has Agent Rice from Kidnapping and Missing Persons sitting on them."

"The Lady suit that got you kidnapped by Wilkes?"

"That's the one. So far she hasn't reported anything happening."

"So what do you want me to do?"

"Carmichael is a cautious man; if he has four safe houses it's a pretty good bet that he has more."

"You want me to do some digging around and find them."

"Can you do it?"

"Give me an hour." Mozzie said before downing his wine and turning to leave.

"Thanks Mozz." Mozzie gave him a weak little smile then quickly disappeared down the stair case, leaving Neal alone with his thoughts.

* * *

><p>"What do we have, Jones?" Peter asked as he stepped out of his black Ford Taurus. The busy New York street was partially blocked off by large SUV's and yellow caution tape, drawing in a crowd. Bons Plats, the French bistro, was swarming with FBI agents in blue jackets busy sweeping the area, gathering evidence and talking to customers. Jones stood at a little table on the sidewalk next to a rather shaken looking couple.<p>

"I've got a couple here that remembers seeing Eleanor. They say she was sitting at a table when a large man in a black jacket sat down. They talked, Eleanor got up to leave, the man stopped her and led her away. My guess is he probably had her at gun point."

"That's a pretty safe assumption…damn it." Peter said rubbing his chin. "Did they see which way Eleanor and the man went?"

"No, they lost track of her in the crowd. But I got some footage off the restaurants surveillance cam, it shows Eleanor being led down a side street and put into a van." Jones said pulling up a video on his computer that sat on the table. Peter watched the grainy film with dread. There was Eleanor closely followed by Ricky. He watched as Ricky held a gun to her head and pushed her in the car.

"Any plates on the van?" Peter asked

"I'm still going through the traffic cams."

"Alright, good work Jones." Peter said his hands resting on his hips. So far they had very little to go on. Things were not looking well. Running his fingers through his hair, Peter turned his back on the street. He didn't see the man in the dark jacket, digging through a nearby trash can. He didn't see that same man fish out a phone and pocket it. He had no idea how close he could have gotten to finding Eleanor.

* * *

><p>Eleanor followed Carmichael up a rickety flight of stairs to a small room that seemed to pose as an office. It was well furnished, with dim lights and soft, squishy chairs. Carmichael gestured for Eleanor to sit as he walked over to a small table covered with liquor bottles.<p>

"Can I tempt you Ms. O'Reily?" he asked his cool demeanor back in full force.

"No thank you." Eleanor said eyeing him strangely. He just shrugged and poured himself a glass. Sitting down and crossing his legs, he pulled out the gun and sat it down on the arm of his chair.

"So tell me, how did you get into this business?" he asked. Eleanor was sure that her mouth fell to the floor. Was he serious? He was holding her captive, why this hell did he care about her past? Not that she had one to share in the first place. Peter may have given her a bullet proof criminal alias, but he didn't provide her a background story.

"Why do you care?"

"Call it morbid curiosity. Now answer my question or do we have to go back to the locker?"

"I think I'll tell you." she said her eyes darting to the gun. "My dad, cheated on my mom. She had to work two jobs, so I thought I would help out. Turns out I was pretty good at it, so here I am." Eleanor rambled out not really revealing much. She watched as Carmichael digested her story, just waiting for him to call her on her lie. It was almost scary how good she was getting at lying, oh if only her mother could see her now.

"Damn shame isn't?" he said shaking his head. "Same thing happened to me, only other way around."

"I'm sorry to hear that."

"Yeah, now onto the bigger question, what are you hiding?"

"I've already told you, I'm not hiding anything."

"Are we going to do this again?"

"I'd really rather not, but you didn't want me to lie so…"

"You have a smart mouth Ms. O'Reily, I would hate for it to get you in trouble."

"You want the truth?" she asked, her voice full of venom. She was sick of this game Carmichael was playing, his cool demeanor and peasant conversation. If there wasn't a gun in the equation, she would have already punched him in the mouth and ran. "If you want it so bad then fine I'll tell you! George and I were going to rip you off. There, you happy?" she spat.

She already knew that Carmichael was suspicious of her, Neal had told her so. Now, Eleanor had a hunch as to why he was so secretive around them. Carmichael was a cautious man, finally making his way into the big leagues. Eleanor remembered how impressed Carmichael was of Neal's record; apparently George Devore was a hot shot. He was such a hot shot that maybe Carmichael began to wonder why a guy like George would want to work for someone as small time as him. It made sense to Eleanor and seemed like a smarter move then to tell him she was working with the FBI.

Carmichael's eyes widened in shock and Eleanor knew she had made the right choice. He didn't suspect her cover, just her motives.

"I knew it." he mumbled getting to his feet. "I knew you two were up to something. There was just no way someone like Devore would want to work for me, it sounded too good to be true."

"Well it was too good to be true, you were just another sucker." Eleanor said pushing on further a plan forming him her mind. Carmichael just smiled and sat back down.

"You truly are full of surprises. If you didn't work for Mr. Devore, I would hire you to be on my crew full time."

"Maybe we can arrange something?"

"Excuse me?"

"Well you got me here, make a good deal and I can give you everything on George. I know all of his hideouts, his next targets, everything."

"You're willing to flip on your boss? I thought you two had a thing."

"George has had some…indiscretions of late and I don't take too kindly to that." Eleanor said keeping up the lie. Maybe, just maybe she might be able to con her way out of this mess. She could convince Carmichael to let her go if she gave up the 'goods' on Neal's alias. It was a long shot at best, but she was clutching on straws. She needed a way out.

"What type of deal do you have in mind?" Carmichael asked leaning back in his chair, tapping his fingertips together.

"You let me out of here, promise me that pig of a man Ricky doesn't point anymore guns in my face and, I tell you everything you want to know."

"As simple as that, I just let you go?"

"You just let me go, oh and I'll agree to work for you as long as I get ten percent from every job." Eleanor said going for the hard sell.

"Ten? How about three?"

"Five." Eleanor said without blinking an eye. Carmichael studied her carefully before holding out his hand for her to shake.

"You've got yourself a deal." He smiled. "I look forward to working with you Ms. O'Reily."

"Oh you have no idea." She smiled getting to her feet. Just then Ricky burst through the door, heaving and holding something small and black in his hand. Eleanor's heart skipped a beat as she recognized the black object, it was her phone. She needed to get out of there now.

"Boss I got her phone."

"Well give it back; I'm sure she'll need it." Carmichael said nonchalantly.

"What?" Ricky asked confused.

"Ms. O'Reily made deal for her freedom, I'm letting her go."

"But boss, you need to see this." Ricky protested.

"You know what, keep the phone I need a new one anyways." Eleanor said scooting towards the door. She could tell by the look in Ricky's eye that he found out her real identity.

"She's got a fed on speed dial!" Ricky cried out. "And the restaurant was swarming with them, she's a fed!" Carmichael froze his smile slipping. He reached for her phone and began combing through her contacts. Eleanor's heart was pounding ferociously in her chest. Her eyes darted to the door, then to Carmichael's reddening face, and then to Ricky's massive form blocking her way. There was no way out.

"And I thought we had something nice going Ms…" he paused looking for her name. "Eleanor Roberts."

"t-that's not mine." She stammered backing away from the two advancing men. "That can't be mine, I'm not a fed!"

"Then who is Agent Peter Burke?"

"He-he's nobody."

"Liar!" he screamed pulling out his gun slapping her hard across the face with it. This time Eleanor couldn't hold back the gasp of pain, the cold metal felt like knives cutting in to her skin. Eleanor fell to the ground, her hand resting on her throbbing cheek.

"Should I kill her?" Ricky suggested as Carmichael paced.

"No, we can still use her. This is a kidnapping after all, I want my demands."

"He'll never make a deal with you." Eleanor hissed.

"Well if he doesn't then I guess I'll just have to kill you." Carmichael said bending down to grab a fist full of her hair. He pulled her painfully to her feet then slammed her down in the chair. "Call him," he ordered handing her the phone. Eleanor began dialing Peter's number with shaking fingers. Blood was dripping down her cheek and tears threatened to spill over. Never before had she been this scared.

"It's ringing." She said holding the phone up. Carmichael snatched it from her hands and gestured to Ricky to tie her up again. With a menacing smile, Ricky pulled out another pair of zip ties and bound her wrists together.

"Gotcha sweetheart." He mumbled in her ear as Carmichael put the phone on speaker.

"_Eleanor, is that you? Where are you?"_ Peter's voice crackled over the phone. "_Eleanor_?"

"Not exactly Agent Burke." Carmichael said a methodical smile on his face.

"_Who is this?"_

"My name is Justin Carmichael and I have your agent. I want thirty million in one hour or she dies."

**A/n: Tell me what you think! **


	10. Chapter 10

"Hey boss, I've got some good news." Agent Diana Barrigan said walking into the conference room. Peter, along with about a dozen other agents, filled the room combing over Carmichael's credit card info, cell phone bills, anything that could lead them to Eleanor. She had been missing for almost a one hour now, with no sign of where she could be. She had disappeared like a ghost.

"I need good news." Peter said looking up from Carmichael's rap sheet.

"We got a hit off those plates. The van belongs to one Ricky Kensington." She said slapping down a file.

"Good, put out a BOLO, we'll see if that's gets us anywhere." He said rubbing his temples. A headache was forming in the back of his head. He needed to find her, for Neal's sake. Neal had called over a dozen times and each time Peter had to tell him what they had which was nothing. He could hear the heartbreak in Neal's voice no matter how hard he tried to cover it up. Peter's phone buzzed on the table, drawing his attention down. Eleanor's number looked back at him. "It's her!" he called out and in an instant there was a flutter of agents, scrambling to a computer to trace the call. Getting a nod from Jones he answered the phone. "Eleanor, is that you? Where are you?" he asked. There was no response, just silence. "Eleanor?"

"_Not exactly Agent Burke_." A cool voice replied.

"Who is this?" he asked even though he knew the answer.

"_My name is Justin Carmichael and I have your agent. I want thirty million in one hour or she dies_."

Peter's, along with all of the other agents in the room, mouth dropped to the floor. Was this man crazy? Thirty million? Even for a kidnapping that was way over the top. This man had to be insane! And he had called Eleanor his agent. Carmichael must be under some illusion that Eleanor was an FBI agent, not a civilian, which only made matters worse for her.

"Thirty million's kinda high don't you think?" Peter asked to keep him talking.

"_I won't repeat myself again Agent Burke, thirty million transferred to bank account number 987355674 in one hour. If you can't come up with the money then you simply will never see Agent Roberts again_." he sneered before hanging up. Peter's hand dropped from his ear. He looked at Jones, begging, pleading, that he got a location. Jones looked up at him, sorrow on his face.

"Did you get it?" Peter asked.

"The call was too short, but I got a general location, Brooklyn Navy yard."

"Damn it!" Peter yelled out tossing his phone on the table.

"It's better than nothing boss." Diana said watching her mentor carefully. Peter nodded and ran his fingers through his hair. If he was going to catch his lunatic he needed to get control of himself or he could get Eleanor killed. Taking a deep breath, he looked up at the room full of agents.

"Jones, contact Agent Rice, tell her to start combing the navy yard. Diana look up that bank account, find out who it belongs too, I want this psycho found."

"What are you going to do?" she asked as Peter headed for the door leading to his office.

"I've gotta call Neal." He said sorrowfully before shutting the door. This was the call he was dreading to make. How could he tell his partner that his girlfriend might die? There was no way in hell the FBI was going to give a grade a psycho path thirty million and now they had a ticking clock. Eleanor only had one hour to live.

* * *

><p>One ring, that's all it took and Neal was there, his phone pressed to his ear.<p>

"Peter, please tell me you have something?" he breathed. He didn't say hello, he didn't even check to see who was calling. He already knew who it was and if Peter was calling him, then he must have something.

"_Neal…_" Peter began slowly, his voice sounding tired. Neal didn't like his tone. It was the tone people took when someone had died.

"What's going on Peter?" he demanded. "Tell me what happened."

"_Carmichael called in a ransom_."

"How much does he want? Do you know where she is? Did you get to speak with her? Is she ok?"

"_Neal, calm down, just breathe for a second_."

"Peter please." Neal said practically begging.

"_He wants thirty million in one hour_."

"Thirty mill- is he crazy?"

"_I'm working under the assumption he is_."

"Well are you going to give it to him?"

"_Neal the FBI doesn't negotiate with criminals_."

"Why the hell not?" he yelled his temper flaring. "You negotiated with me!"

"_That's a different story Neal. We made a deal and you weren't holding anyone hostage_."

"So what if you don't get him the money? W-what happens to Ellie?"

"_She-_" Peter faltered. Neal wanted to scream.

"What happens to her?"

"_She'll die_."

"Damn it!" Neal cried.

"_We'll find her by then Neal I swear_." Peter's voice tried to assure him but Neal wasn't listening. He was walking in circles, pulling at his hair, biting his lip. She couldn't die, Peter couldn't let her die. This was like the car accident all over again only now Eleanor's life wasn't hanging in the balance, she had a death sentence. "_Neal, are you there? Answer me_."

"I'm here Peter." Neal said his voice shaking.

"_Listen to me Neal. I will find her. I will_."

"I know you will." He mumbled. His knees felt weak, like he was going to collapse.

"_I'm sending Jones over to keep an eye on you_."

"Don't I'm fine. Mozz is here anyways." Neal lied.

"_Neal…_"

"Peter I'm fine, just-just find her."

"_I will and I'll call if anything changes_."

"Thanks Peter." Neal said before hanging up. He sunk down into the nearest chair and cradled his head in his hands. He couldn't lose her, not after Kate. He wasn't sure he could handle it. First she gets hit by a car, then a gun is pointed at her head, and now she gets kidnapped. What else could she possible get into? Eleanor was like a magnet to danger. He was sure that she would kill him if his line of work didn't get to him first. Neal looked up to a set on wine glasses sitting innocently on the table. They were empty of their normal blood red contents, cleaned up and dry. He couldn't help but see Eleanor like those glasses, dead and empty. She couldn't die, he wouldn't let it happen. In a burst of anger his hand swiped the table, knocking the glasses to the floor, shattering them.

"I take it things have gone from bad to worse?" Mozzie asked standing in the door way, looking at the broken glass.

"He called in a ransom for thirty million." Neal croaked his head resting in his hands once more.

"Thirty million? Who in their right mind asks for thirty million in a kidnapping?"

"Mozzie please tell me you found something."

"As a matter of fact I did." He smiled walking over to the table and sitting down. "Turns out, your hunch was right. Carmichael has several more safe houses that the FBI doesn't know about."

"How many more?"

"Three, an apartment in Harlem, a loft in the Meat Packing district, and a warehouse in the Brooklyn Navel Yard." Neal stopped and thought for a moment a plan formulating in his head. He picked up his phone and quickly began dialing. "Who are you calling?" Mozzie asked, but Neal just held up a finger.

"_What's up Neal_?" Peter asked.

"Hey did you happen to get a location off the phone call? I meant to ask earlier but I was a little distracted."

"_Jones narrowed it down to the Brooklyn Navel Yard, why_?"

"Uh, no reason I just wanted to know, oh and one more thing. Does Carmichael know that I work for the FBI?"

"_No I think he still believes you are George Devore, Eleanor on the other hand, he thinks is an agent." _

"Great, thanks Peter." Neal said trying to end the conversation.

"_Neal I know what you're thinking. Don't do anything stupid_." Peter pressed on.

"Come on Peter, you know me better than that."

"_Yeah I do, and I know that you'll plan some half-cocked con and go running off to the Navel Yard by yourself_."

"Would I really do something like that?"

"_Yes you would. I have Jones monitoring your tracking data continuously, you try leaving your apartment I'll find out_."

"Peter, trust me I'm not gonna leave."

"_You better not_."

"I won't, call me if anything changes."

"_I will, don't do anything stupid_."

"I won't Peter." Neal lied then hung up.

"What was that about?" Mozzie asked.

"Peter said that Carmichael's call came from somewhere in the Navel Yard-"

"And Carmichael has a warehouse in the Navel Yard." Mozzie said finishing his sentence for him. "So what's your plan?"

"I'll go to his warehouse as Devore to make a trade. I'll say that I just recently found out that Michele O'Reily-"

"Eleanor."

"Yes Eleanor, is really a FBI agent. I'll tell him that I want Ellie so I can 'deal with her accordingly' and give him his ransom money in exchange."

"As good as your plan sounds mon frère, how do you plan on catching the bad guys?"

"that's when Peter comes in. he said that he has Jones monitoring my tracking data and if I'm right, the Navel Yard is out of my two mile radius."

"Ahh, you run off to save your damsel in distress while alerting the suits of your location, very clever."

"Hopefully by the time that I make it to the warehouse Peter will be right behind me."

"One other thing, how do you plan on getting thirty million?"

"Good question, how are my reserves?"

"Pretty dry, definitely nowhere near thirty million." Mozzie said before pausing to look at Neal. There on his face, for the first time all day, sat a smile. "No, no, no, no, Neal that is out of the question."

"Come on Mozz, if I don't get the money to Carmichael in an hour she'll die."

"Fine, I'll go get the box." Mozzie said rolling his eyes. "But you owe me big time."

"Thanks Mozz." Neal said feeling hopeful, this might actually work.

**A/n: Thanks for all the reviews, alerts, and favorites! They keep me writing! This should be wrapping up soon, but until then, tell me what you think!**


	11. Chapter 11

"You're not going to get away with this." Eleanor hissed. "Peter is never going to give you the money."

"Oh I don't expect him too." Carmichael laughed from his chair. Ricky stood by the door, his arms folded in front of him.

"Then what's the point of all this? Why don't you just kill me?"

"It's all part of the game." Carmichael said leaning forward. "You see, it gets the feds all worked up when one of their agents is in danger, they'll do anything to get you back alive."

"Yeah, everything but give you the money."

"This is true, but it also adds a twist in the game. Not only will I get the satisfaction of killing you, but your little FBI pals will feel like failures when they find your rotten corpse lying in some ditch."

"So it's a two birds with one stone kind of thing? Kill me and humiliate the FBI at the same time."

"Precisely." Carmichael said as he phone began to ring. He looked down at the screen, confusion spreading across his face. "Excuse me but I need to take this." He said walking to the door. "Watch her, make sure she doesn't move."

"Sure thing boss." Ricky said stepping aside for Carmichael. He looked her over and offered a slimy smile.

"Ugh, I know I'm gonna die and all but, please don't make me sick." Eleanor said shifting uncomfortable in her seat. Her cheek was still throbbing from her run in with Carmichael's gun but thankfully most of the blood had dried up. The plastic ties around her wrists on the other hand, were extremely tight and cut into her skin like little teeth. But despite her injuries, it was the fact that she had gotten so close from walking out of this mess unharmed only to be stuck in a room waiting for her death, killed her. She was that close to freedom only to have it taken away.

"Aw come on sweetheart, I can't be that bad."

"Trust me, you are." She sneered leaning back in her chair. Carmichael's voice floated in from the other side of the door grabbing her attention. He sounded worried and confused which gave Eleanor a surge of hope. Maybe Peter had gotten a trace off her phone and was on his way to rescue her. However the winning smile on Carmichael's face when he returned told a different story.

"Ricky, how much time does our fed friend have left?"

"Uh, like twenty more minutes boss."

"Excellent." He said clapping his hands.

"You are really looking forward to killing me aren't you?"

"Actually, there's been a change of plans."

"What kind of change?" Eleanor asked perking up.

"Don't worry your pretty little head about it. Ricky, get her up." He ordered. Ricky, being the obedient sidekick he was, grabbed Eleanor roughly under the arm and pulled her to her feet. A sinking feeling settled in her stomach. Something wasn't right.

* * *

><p>Twenty minutes, that's all the time he had left to find her. With each ticking of the second hand Peter could feel Eleanor slipping away. It wasn't supposed to end like this. He was supposed to find her. He had to find her. He couldn't do this to Neal. He knew the kid had done some bad things in his past but he never did anything to deserve this. If Eleanor died…Neal would never be the same again.<p>

Peter looked down at the sheet of paper in front of him. The words seemed to run together like a black mass. Blinking his eyes several times, the black mass broke up to form words once more. Looking the paper over again, Peter's eyes fell on some words that made his heart jump. Bingo.

"Jones! Get in here I think I found something!" Peter called out to his agent. Jones got up from his desk and bounded up to Peter's office.

"What's up boss?"

"I think I may have found Eleanor. I was looking over a list of associates when I found this." He said handing the paper to Jones. Jones read it over, his eyes lighting up the further down he read. "Turns out one of his men bought a warehouse in the Brooklyn Navy Yard."

"I'll get the address to Agent Rice." Jones said before running from the office. Peter felt like he could do back flips. He had found her, now he just had to get to the warehouse in time.

"Boss." Diana said walking into his office a grim look on her face. The exuberant feeling Peter was experiencing slowly began to fade.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"It's Neal, he cut his anklet."

"Where is he going?" Peter asked reaching for his gun and jacket.

"Brooklyn Navy Yard."

"Damn it, he's going to find Eleanor. Diana gather a team, we can't let them get hurt."

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><p>Fear ran through Eleanor's veins, her heart pounded in her chest like she had just run a marathon. Carmichael said there had been a change but gave no inclination as to what the new plan was. Eleanor had the sinking feeling that whatever it was, it was going to be worse than what he was going to do. But what was worse than death?<p>

"Take her back to the locker; I'll be down in a minute." Carmichael ordered. Ricky nodded and began dragging Eleanor to the door. Her mind was whirling; this was her last chance to escape. The FBI wasn't coming; the ransom time was almost up. Her last hope was gone. If she couldn't get away now, there was no way in hell she ever would. Her eyes darted around the massive warehouse, formulating a plan in her head. It was going to be risky, but she needed to get out. Eleanor waited until Ricky shut the door before she put her plan in motion. Halfway down the rickety steps, Eleanor stopped and began coughing.

"Keep moving." Ricky grumbled. Eleanor didn't listen; instead she began coughing harder, doubling over. Ricky rolled his eyes and relaxed, his arms crossing across his chest. Then Eleanor pounced, punching Ricky hard in the crotch. He groaned, tears welling up in his eyes. Eleanor didn't stick around to admire her achievement; she took off running, down the rest of the steps to the large metal sliding door she was brought through.

A wild smile broke across her face as she crossed the warehouse, the door growing closer. 30 feet, 20 feet, 10 feet. She was almost there, freedom finally within her reach. Just then gun shots exploded in the empty space sounding like cannons. Eleanor dropped to the floor and curled her body into a ball for protection. She stayed like that fighting back tears that threatened to spill over.

Once again she had her freedom snatched away from her. As Ricky's heavy footsteps drew nearer Eleanor braced herself for the pain she knew was bound to come. Her guess was right. Ricky pulled her up to her feet by her hair and began shaking her, screaming words she couldn't understand. She was at her wits end. She didn't know how much longer she could be strong.

"Ricky, what the hell is going on?" Carmichael yelled as he ran down the stairs.

"She tried to run boss." Ricky replied his hands growing tighter on Eleanor's arms.

"Did she now?" he said jogging up to her. "I'll give you points for persistence." Eleanor shot him a nasty glare afraid to say anything. Her fear was slowly taking over her strength; she thought if she said anything her voice might betray her. "What no response? Have I finally tamed your mouth?"

"Go to hell." She whispered.

"I plan on it." he smiled. Just then there was a knock on the metal sliding door. "Good, our guest is here. Ricky, hold her, and try not to let her slip away this time." Ricky grunted and pulled Eleanor closer to him. Carmichael striated his suit jacket and walked causally to the door as if he was strolling in the park. Eleanor's heart began to pick up speed, adrenaline pumped through her veins. It was getting harder to breathe and it felt like the walls were closing in on her. This was it, her time was up. She was going to die. There was a horrible screech as Carmichael pulled open the door. Warm evening sunlight filled the empty warehouse space obscuring Eleanor's view of the visitor.

"Mr. Devore, so glad to see you." Carmichael said pleasantly. Eleanor's heart stopped. Did he just say what he thought he said? Her eyes shot to the visitor who was walking further into the warehouse. It was Neal.

**A/n: One more chapter left :( but until then,**** Tell me what you think!**


	12. Chapter 12

**A/n: Sorry about the delay, I just didn't want this story to end, but alas, it's over and Eleanor is taking her final bow. Thank you so much for the reviews/alerts/favorites and most especially everyone who has read this from the beginning and stuck with Eleanor for so long. Thank you so very much! I don't know when I'll be writing again but in the words of Mozzie, "It's goodbye, but we lean forward to the next crazy venture beneath the skies." I hope you enjoy the last chapter!**

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><p>"Cut the pleasantries, I want to make this quick." Neal snapped as he walked further into the warehouse. Eleanor watched him with weary eyes; he wasn't making eye contact with her, his face was a mask of business.<p>

"As you wish." Carmichael bowed. "We have the girl here." he said pointing to Eleanor. "Hand over the money and you can have her."

"I thought I told you not to harm her." Neal said his eyes flashing with fire when he finally saw her face.

"Our little friend here took quite a fall…before your call I assure you." he added before Neal could make a retort. "Do you have the money?"

"I do." Neal said holding up a briefcase. "All thirty million of it."

"Excellent!" Carmichael said bouncing on his heels. "Let me see it."

"What you don't trust that I have it?"

"Trust you? Hell no, why would I trust you?" said icily. "You see me and Ms. O'Reily or should I say Agent Roberts, had a nice little chat before you arrived."

"Did you now?"

"We did, and she told me about your little plan to rip me off."

"I always thought she was too mouthy for her own good." Neal said throwing her a hard glare. The hateful look in his eyes was so convincing that she recoiled a little.

"Glad I'm not the only one who thinks that." He laughed throwing Eleanor a look that made her skin crawl.

"It's true, I was going to rip you off, but I hope that you can consider this a peace offering as well as a trade off." Neal said holding up the briefcase once more. Carmichael looked him over for a moment before a wide smile broke out across his face.

"I think I accept that." He said politely.

"So how do you want to do this?"

"Hand me the case, then I'll give you the girl."

"Afraid I might take the girl and run with the money?" Neal asked with the slightest hint of a smile on his face.

"The thought had crossed my mind. The case if you please." He said holding out his hands. Eleanor saw Neal sigh before walking forward and holding the case out. Carmichael took the case with greedy hands. He opened it his eyes growing wide with the amount of money in front of him.

"Is that enough?"

"Oh yes, yes, yes, yes." Carmichael said happier than a kid on Christmas. "Ricky, hand over the agent." Ricky did as he was told, roughly dragging Eleanor along before shoving her at Neal. Neal barely caught her as she stumbled into his arms. Gently, Neal stood her up and wrapped his hand around her now bruised arm.

To Carmichael and Ricky, his grip looked hard and firm but to Eleanor it was soft and comforting. Standing next to him now, after coming so close to death, made her feel unbelievably emotional. She wanted to break down crying right then and there, but she couldn't, not yet at least. "Our business here is done Mr. Devore, feel free to leave. Oh and have fun with her, she's a feisty one, she'll put up a fight."

Neal's grip on her arm tightened and she let out a hiss of pain. Taking a chance, she looked up at his face, to find it contorted with hate and anger. She tapped him gently on the foot with hers getting his attention. He looked down at her his blue eyes icy and cold. Eleanor shook her head slightly; they weren't out of this mess yet. Neal took a deep breath and smoothed over his expression.

"Our business isn't done just yet." Neal said making Carmichael and Ricky's head snap up from the briefcase.

"Oh no? And why is that?"

"Because, Ms. Roberts isn't an FBI agent." Neal stated calmly.

"Really, and who told you that?"

"No one told me, I know."

"And how would you know Mr. Devore? I have her phone, I've seen her contacts. Ricky here has even seen the little Bistro where he grabbed her swarming with agents. How do you know that she isn't a fed?"

"I know, because I'm the one working for the FBI."

"You-you are the one working for the feds?" Carmichael asked flabbergasted. "I don't believe you."

"See for yourself." Neal said tossing over a leather wallet. Carmichael caught it and flipped it open. Eleanor allowed herself a celebratory smile at the sight of Carmichael's pale face. He ran his hands through his hair and clutched Neal's Id tightly in his hand.

"You bastard!" he hissed as he and Ricky pointed their guns in Neal and Eleanor's direction. "I'm gonna kill you!"

"I wouldn't do that if I were you."

"Oh yeah and why not?" he asked just at a chorus of sirens pierced the evening air, filling the empty warehouse space.

"That's why." Neal said simply.

"How did they find us!" he screamed looking around the warehouse nervously, a thin sheet of sweat breaking out across his head.

"You can blame that on me too." Neal said lifting up his pant leg to expose his tracking anklet. The little light that was normally green was now flashing red. Eleanor had never been so happy to see that stupid anklet in her life. There was a screech of tires and the slamming of doors before the sirens were replaced by shouts of FBI agents.

"FBI drop your weapons!"

"Put the gun down!"

"FBI freeze!"

Then, everything began moving in slow motion, a dizzying scene playing out before her. The agents swarmed around Carmichael and Ricky, disarming them, moving as if they were underwater. Peter came running in his gun drawn followed by a woman with strawberry blond hair. They were yelling but Eleanor couldn't hear them. It was as if someone had turned the volume down on her life. She watched as Peter slapped cuffs on her captors leading them away to the cars. As they passed, Carmichael began yelling at her, spit flying from his mouth, struggling against his bonds. His eyes were bulging from their sockets, his crazy nature shining through. Neal pulled Eleanor close wrapping his arms around her protectively. Through a gap in his arm, she watched him get loaded away, gone from her life completely.

She felt something cold bush up against her raw wrist as Neal snipped her bindings off. Her head was spinning with confusion. The lights that flashed off the nearby buildings and the mass of FBI agents only added to her to her delirium. Her knees felt weak and before she knew it, the ground was coming up to meet her. Neal caught her just seconds before she crashed to the floor. He held her close, as pent up tears of fear, exhaustion, and anger spilled over. His hands stroked her hair while he rocked her. For the first time in a long time she felt safe.

"He's gone Ellie." He cooed in her ear. "He'll never hurt you again."

"I was s-so scared." She whispered, her voice shaking. "I thought I was going to d-die."

"It's alright, nothing is going to happen to you. It's all over, you're safe now." He said before kissing her on the forehead. "No one's going to hurt you. I won't let anyone hurt you."

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><p>"You are completely sure you want to do this?" Neal asked sitting in the passenger seat, his eye brows raised.<p>

"Yes, I'm sure."

"Ellie, you were kidnapped yesterday, don't you think you should take it easy?"

"You're right Neal I was kidnapped yesterday and because of that I want to do something normal for a change."

"And you think this is normal?"

"I do, now let's go." Eleanor said getting out. She walked around the car and held the door open for Neal.

"Thank you." he said with a smile taking her hand, his fingers brushing over her bandaged wrist. Eleanor considered herself lucky. After all she managed to survive a kidnapping with just a gash on her cheek, a few bruises on her arms, and some cuts on her wrists. When she thought of what could have happened she was thankful for what she got. Neal gently wrapped his arm around hers as he knocked on the door in front of them. They only waited a few seconds before a woman with long, beautiful, raven hair and startling blue eyes opened the door beaming.

"You must be Eleanor." She said happily embracing Eleanor like she was a long time friend. "I can't tell you how long I've been waiting to meet you! I'm Elizabeth, Peter's wife."

"Hi." Eleanor said starting to feel only a little bit awkward.

"Hey Neal." Elizabeth said kissing Neal on the cheek.

"Elizabeth."

"Well come inside, dinner's almost ready." She said welcoming them into her bright home.

"You have a lovely place." Eleanor commented as she looked around the Burke's home. It was lively and inviting, the walls painted in light pastel colors that gave off the essence of spring or early summer. It seemed to match Elizabeth's attitude, cheerful and welcoming.

"Thank you." Elizabeth said with a warm smile.

"Hey Elizabeth, where's Peter?" Neal asked looking around.

"Oh he's in the kitchen finishing up."

"You let him cook?"

"Don't worry; he was only making a salad." She laughed. Neal just shrugged and left the two women alone in the living room. "I can't believe it's taken us so long to meet!" Elizabeth began taking a seat on the couch.

"I think we met once," Eleanor said sitting down next to her. "At the hospital."

"Oh yes, yes now I remember, that's when you met Neal, right?"

"Yeah," Eleanor said with a chuckle. "Yeah that's when we met. But who knew it would turn out like this."

"Love is a funny thing; you never know when it'll show up." Elizabeth said as a laugh from Neal floated to them from the kitchen.

"How did you and Peter meet?"

"He was investigating the art gallery I was working at." She said sweetly her eyes misting over as she recalled the memory.

"Investigating? Did something happen?"

"There was a robbery and I was a witness so Peter had to ask me lots of questions. I could tell he liked me, but he was too nervous to say anything. So you know, I gave him a little nudge."

"Men, they never seem to get the message."

"Tell me about it," Elizabeth laughed. "So Peter told me what happened last night."

"Did he?" Eleanor said silently cursing Peter. This was supposed to be a distraction, something to take her mind off of last night, not talk about it.

"He did. How are you holding up?"

"Oh you know, I'm fine." Eleanor said off handedly waving her hand.

"Ooh someone's been spending too much time around Neal. You've learned his technique of deflecting." Eleanor smiled and lowered her head. Elizabeth seemed like such a nice, caring person. Hell she had only known her for a few short minutes and she could already tell that she was lying. And right now, Elizabeth seemed genuinely concerned.

"All things considering, I think I'm ok." Eleanor said looking into Elizabeth's caring eyes. "Had a nightmare last night, but that's to be expected I guess. I-I just don't think I was cut out for that, going undercover and all. It's not who I am."

"Not all of us are." Elizabeth said taking her hand into her own. "But look at what you did. You helped take down a group of criminals and survived a kidnapping, not many people can say they've done that. It may not be who you are, but you did the right thing." Eleanor smiled. "And if you ever need someone to talk to, my door is always opened."

"Thanks Elizabeth."

"No problem honey." She said. Just then a large golden retriever came pattering up to her, resting his head on her lap.

"Hello there." Eleanor said scratching the dog behind his ears.

"Aw that's Satchmo, our baby."

"He's adorable." Eleanor said as Satchmo began licking her face.

"Yeah we like him." Elizabeth joked.

"Alright ladies," Peter said coming out of the kitchen holding a dish, Neal right behind him with the salad. "Dinner is severed."

"Smells delicious." Eleanor said as she and Elizabeth walked to the kitchen table.

"Well, the credit goes to my wife, she did all the cooking." Peter said setting down the dish of lasagna.

"Thank goodness for that." Neal quipped as he pulled out Eleanor's chair.

"Hey I can cook. I can make pot roast." Peter responded looking hurt.

"Oh yes how could I forget, Peter Burke, pot roast master chief."

"Damn strait I am."

"I'm sure your salad tastes wonderful Peter." Eleanor offered sweetly.

"Thank you Eleanor," he said before pointing his finger at Neal. "See Neal, someone likes my cooking."

"You do realize she hasn't actually eaten anything right?" Neal said looking doubtful.

"Oh so you don't trust Eleanor's judgment?"

"Boys, not at the dinner table." Elizabeth said breaking up the fight before it could progress any further.

"Are they always like this?" Eleanor asked amused by the boys' childish behavior.

"All the time, if I didn't know any better I'd say they were an old married couple." Neal and Peter rolled their eyes and the exact same time, sending Eleanor and Elizabeth into a fit of laughter.

"What?" they both said at the same time, making the women laugh harder.

"What are they laughing at?" Peter asked dumbfounded.

"No clue." Neal said shaking his head.

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><p>Eleanor sat on the edge of Neal's bed watching him undress. He casually striped off his suit jacket, hanging it neatly on a hanger before slowly unbuttoning his shirt. His fingers slipped on one of the buttons, his hand shaky from the amount of alcohol he had consumed. Eleanor got up from the bed and walked over to him, standing mere inches apart. She began to unbutton his shirt for him getting a kiss of appreciation on the cheek.<p>

The happy mood created from the dinner at the Burke's still hung over her head. After everything she had been through, it felt exhilarating to do something normal for a change. But the more she thought about it, the more Eleanor realized that her life was far from normal. She had been in love with one man all of her life, never broke things off to try something new. Then she had lost that love to a fatal car accident after uprooting her happy life in Georgia to move to New York. And after five years she fell in love again, to a con man, who she met while saving his life. How normal was any of that?

None the less, she was happy with her not normal life. She had hit some major lows but then again who hasn't? Loosing Danny was heart breaking but finding Neal was more than she could ever ask for. She wouldn't change anything.

"What are you smiling about?" Neal asked tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear.

"Oh nothing," she said off handedly as she worked her way down his shirt. "I was just thinking, that's all."

"What were you thinking about?"

"Danny…you…tonight…you know, just stuff."

"Are you ok?" Neal asked concerned, his thumb stroking her jaw line.

"Yeah," she said looking up at him with misty eyes.

"Ellie, what's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong, I just…"

"Just what?"

"I'm just so happy I met you." She smiled up at him resting her hand on his bare chest. Neal smiled his most dazzling smile, his eyes lighting up like fireworks.

"I'm happy I met you too." He said his lips brushing against hers. They kissed, his hands entangling themselves in her hair, her arms wrapping around his body. She let him hold her for a while, feeling his strong arms surrounding her, keeping her safe. No, she wouldn't trade anything for this. This was her life, this is what she wanted. Neal broke away kissing her again on the lips before completely taking off his button up all pulling on a t-shirt.

"Neal," Eleanor said as she sat back down on the bed, a sudden thought floating into her mind. "Why did Carmichael want to steal that painting?"

"The _Bella_ _Notte_?" he asked pulling on a pair of sweat pants.

"Yeah, what made that painting so special?"

"The money, Danza is a serious pay day; his works are worth millions in the right market."

"Is that why you would steal it?"

"One of the reasons." He said sitting down next to her.

"What other reason is there?"

"The story." Neal said simply, shrugging his shoulders.

"The story? Please don't tell me the painting was made in honor of two dogs eating spaghetti?" Eleanor joked.

"No, this was made long before Lady and the Tramp, trust me." Neal laughed shaking his head. "Have you ever seen _Bella_ _Notte_?"

"I've never heard of it until this case. Why what is it?"

"Danza painted Bella Notte after his wife Isabella died from cancer. Her death drove him insane. He began to drink, act violently, and even attempt suicide. One day while he was in one of his drunken stupors he saw a vision of his dead wife. He said in one of his journals that she was even more radiant then the most brilliant star in the night sky. After that encounter he cleaned himself up and began to paint."

"_Bella_ _Notte_ isn't a painting of some night sky is it?" Eleanor asked enthralled by Neal's story.

"No, it's a portrait of his wife." He said stroking her arm. Eleanor sighed and rested her head on Neal shoulder.

"He really loved her." she whispered.

"Yeah, he did."

"Am I your _Bella_ Notte?" Eleanor asked. Neal looked down at her a smile on his face.

"More than you can even imagine." He said before kissing her. Eleanor laughed and fell backwards on the bed, her arms wrapped around him. Her hand rested on his face, her eyes locked onto his magical blues.

"I love you Neal Caffrey."

"And I love you Eleanor Roberts." He said before kissing her again.

"You know this makes you the Tramp."

"Only if you'll be my Lady?"

"I thought you'd never ask." She said pulling him closer. Eleanor kissed him, closing her eyes. Why would anyone want normal, if you could have this? No, she'd take her tramp, her con man any day of the week.

It was late, the stars were shining brighter than normal, and Eleanor Roberts was finally happy. Nothing could get better than this.

The End

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><p><strong>Tell me what you think!<strong>


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